SPANISH ADJECTIVES

What is an adjective?
I know many of us don’t remember grade 6 English class and the difference between a noun,
adjective, verb, and so on. It’s just useless information we never use in real life, you say? Well,
now that you’re learning Spanish, your life will be a lot easier if you understand these terms. So
let’s do a quick recap.

An adjective is a “describing word”. It’s a word that is used to describe a noun (a person, place,
or thing). Some English examples are happy, bad, small, wise, and interesting.

Examples of common Spanish adjectives

The Spanish adjectives you will hear and read very regularly are:

 Bueno/a | Good
 Malo/a | Bad
 Feliz | Happy
 Triste | Sad
 Grande | Large
 Pequeño/a | Small
 Bonito/a | Attractive
 Feo/a | Ugly
 Fuerte | Strong
Of course, there are thousands more adjectives in Spanish. But if you start by learning the basics,
like Spanish colors, feelings, and personal descriptions, then you’ll have most daily
conversations covered.

Placement of Spanish adjectives

In English, adjectives either go before the thing they are describing, like “red house”,
“smelly cat” or “hard rock”; or they go after a copula verb, like in “the girl looks angry,” or
“the ball is flat”.

In Spanish, just remember that the adjective always follows the noun, whether it is in a sentence
or in a phrase with a noun. So the English “red house” becomes “casa roja”, and “the baby is
sad” follows the same structure as in English: “el bebé está triste”.

There are exceptions to this rule, though.

Spanish adjectives that appear both before and after the noun
Some Spanish adjectives can be placed both before and after the noun, and depending on their
positions, they give different meanings. I consider this a very advanced topic because the
differences in meaning are usually very nuanced. Here are some more common examples of
those:

• cierto
cierto hombre | a certain man

el hombre cierto | the correct man

• pobre

el pobre niño | the poor (pitiful) child

el niño pobre | the poor (impoverished) child

• viejo

mi viejo profesor | my old (former) teacher

mi profesor viejo | my old (aged) teacher

• único

tu única oportunidad | your only opportunity

tu oportunidad única | your unique opportunity

• grande

la gran casa | the grand house

la casa grande | the large house

• nuevo

mi nuevo celular | my new (to me) cellphone

mi celular nuevo | my new (from the store) cellphone

Spanish adjectives that only appear before the noun

Finally, there are a small number of adjectives that only appear before the noun, or after a verb.
These tend to be superlative adjectives. These adjectives change to plural forms before plural
nouns, but they do not change regardless of the gender of the noun.

Here are some examples:

• mejor | better/best

la mejor forma de vivir | the best way to live

• peor | worse/worst
el peor bonbon de la caja | the worst candy of the box

Spanish adjectives endings

Singular Spanish adjectives will always end in -z, -r, l, -e, or -o/-a. The most common Spanish
adjective ending by far is the -o/-a variety. It ends in -o in its masculine form, and it ends in -a in
its feminine form.

Plural Spanish adjectives will always end in -s, whether it’s -es, -os, or -as. Again, it will be -os
for masculine adjectives, -as for feminine adjectives. Plural adjectives ending in -es can be either
masculine or feminine.

Exceptions to Spanish Adjectives

Some adjectives use the same form for both genders. Luckily these exceptions are pretty
consistent. Here are some examples:

Adjectives ending in E

 Inteligente. (intelligent)
 Verde. (green)
 Caliente. (hot)
 Grande. (big)
 Amable. (kind/friendly)
Adjectives ending in consonants

 Genial. (great)
 Azul. (blue)
 Gris. (gray)
 Cortés. (polite/courteous)
 Marrón. (dark brown)
Adjectives ending is ISTA

 Perfeccionista. (perfectionist)
 Materialista. (materialistic)
 Alarmista. (alarmist)
 Extremista. (extremist)
Comparative adjectives ending in OR

 Superior. (superior, or above when speaking about position)

 Menor. (less)
 Inferior. (inferior)
 Peor. (worse)
 Mejor. (better)
WORKING WITH ADVERB AND ADJECTIVES , PREPOSITION AND CONJUNCTION

Working with adjectives and nouns in Spanish sentences.

Here we have a few more examples with each article :

Adjective Function Meaning

1. ) El auto rojo es grade The red car is big

2.) Los sofas grandes son funcionales The big sofas are functional.

3.) Las niñas atléticas son saludables. The athletic girls are healthy.

Adjectives as Noun Meaning

1.)El rojo es grande The red one is big

2.) Los grandes son funcionales The big ones are functional

3.) Las niñas atléticas son saludables The athletic ones are healthy.

Just as in English, you would have to mention the niun you refer toonce so that others know
what you refer to when you use an adjetive as a noun.Here are some examples that ilustrate
this :

* There are two dresses in the closet and I want the black one.

Hay dos vestidos en el clóset y yo quiero el negro.

* The small table is nice. However, the small one doesn't work for me.

La mesa pequeña es bonita.Sin embargo, la pequeña no me sirve.

* The white socks are appropriate. The problem is the white ones are dirty.

Las medias blancas son apropiadas . El problema es que las blancas estan sucias.

Some descriptive adjectives (such as tall, short, fat, etc.) areoften used in Spanish tosecify a
person. The formula is the same as above, so you would just add el, la, los, las.

* La guapa es mi esposa . ( The pretty one is my wife.)

* El delgado es el empleado nuevo. ( The thin one is the new employee)

Similarly, some descriptive asjectives are often used as nouns to simply refer to people of certain
characteristics:

* El joven or la joven ( a young person)

* el anciano or la anciana (an old person)

* el pequeño or la pequeña ( a little boy or little girl)

Ejemplo : La pequeña juega en el parque. ( The little (girl) plays in the park.

Tell how, how often, when, and where something happens, you need adverbs! There are many
common ones you can easily add to your vocabulary to help better your descriptions of events!

Common Adverbs

Adverbs tell how, how often, when, and where an action takes place. They can modify verbs,
adjectives, and other adverbs. Basically, adverbs help you to be a little more precise when
describing.

There are different categories of adverbs depending on what information they give. Adverbs that
tell how something is done are called adverbs of manner while those that tell how often
something is done are called adverbs of frequency. Adverbs of place describe where an action
occurs, and adverbs of time communicate when something happened. Many adverbs end in -
mente, but we will also look at other common forms.

Common Adverbs of Manner

These adverbs tell how something is done. Now, there are tons of ways to describe how
something is done. In Spanish, you can take any adjective in the feminine form or neutral
adjective and add -mente to the end of it to create an adverb of manner. For example, rapido,
quick, would make the adverb rápidamente, quickly, or fácil could become the adverb fácilmente
- easily.

While the list of adjectives we could turn into adverbs could go on forever, we will focus on
these common adverbs of manner:

rápidamente; rápido - quickly

lentamente; despacio - slowly

fácilmente - easily

difícilmente - with difficulty

bien - well

mal - badly

muy - very

perfectamente - perfectly

además - furthermore, besides

así - like this

normalmente - normally

básicamente - basically

cuidadosamente - carefully

ruidosamente - loudly

silenciosamente - quietly

Common Adverbs of Frequency

These adverbs describe how frequently an action is performed. Here are some common ones:

siempre - always

a menudo - often

mucho - a lot

con frecuencia; frecuentemente - frequently

diariamente; todos los días - daily; everyday

bastante - enough

de vez en cuando - from time to time

a veces - sometimes

poco - a little

apenas - hardly

nunca; jamás - never

Common Adverbs of Place

Adverbs of place help communicate where something took place.

aquí - here

allí - there

adentro - inside

afuera - outside

cerca - close

lejos - far

adelante - in front

atrás - behind

While the listed adverbs are more general, you can get more specific by using the following
prepositions:

en - in; at

al; a la - to the

For example:

Yo comí en casa hoy. I ate at home today.

Aprendí eso en clase. I learned that in class.

PART II - PREPOSITION

Introduction:

Prepositions are used to indicate a relationship between two words or phrases, linking them together. They are often used
to indicate relationships of location, direction, or time.

As the prefix pre in the word preposition suggests, prepositions precede the word or words they
link. There are simple prepositions, which consist of only one word, and compound prepositions,
which consist of multiple words.

Simple prepositions
Below you will find a list of some of the most common simple prepositions in Spanish.

SPANIS
ENGLISH SPANISH ENGLISH
H

a ante before, in the presence

to, at
of

bajo con
under with

contra de
against of, from

desde detrás (de)

from, since behind

en entre
in, on, at between, among

hacia hasta
toward toward

para por
for, in order to for, by

según sin
according to without

sobre about, on, upon, above, over, tras

after, behind
around
See the article on por vs. para for more information on this tricky pair of prepositions.

Using Spanish Prepositions

In most cases, prepositions are used the same way in Spanish as they are in English, and you will
find their placements fairly logical. There are a few Spanish prepositions, however, that warrant
a little extra attention. Below you'll find more in-depth information on a few of the most
common Spanish prepositions.

Preposition Profile: a

This very common preposition can mean to, at, by, or for, among other translations.

It can be used to:

 indicate motion (translation: to)

EXAMPLES

Fuimos a España.

We went to Spain.

Iremos al museo el martes.

We will go to the museum on Tuesday.

 connect a verb to another verb in the infinitive (no direct English translation)
EXAMPLES

Vamos a bailar.

We are going to dance.

Empecé a leer.

I began to read.

 indicate manner, or how something is done (translations: on, by, with)

EXAMPLES
Vamos a pie.

We're going on foot.

Lo hice a mano.

I did it by hand.

Escribe a lápiz.

He writes with a
pencil.

 introduce a person as a direct object, aka the personal a (no direct English translation)
EXAMPLES

¿Conoces a Isabela?

Do you know Isabela?

Veo a mi madre.

I see my mother.

 introduce an indirect object (translations: to, for)

EXAMPLES

Le di el regalo a Celia.

I gave the gift to Celia.

Compré los tomates a Anita.

I bought the tomatoes for Anita.

 express time (translation: at, although sometimes it has no direct translation)

EXAMPLES
Cenamos a las seis.

We eat dinner at six o'clock.

Estamos a martes.

It is Tuesday.

Preposition Profile: de

This preposition can mean of, from, or with, among other translations. It can be used to:

 indicate possession (translations: of or possessive 's or s')

EXAMPLES

Atlanta es la capital de Georgia.

Atlanta is the capital of Georgia.

Allí está el café de Manuel.

There's Manuel's cafe.

 indicate cause (translations: from, of, with)

EXAMPLES

Estoy cansada de correr.

I am tired from running.

Estamos contentos de nuestro hijo.

We are happy with our son.

 indicate origin (translations: from, of)

EXAMPLES

Ella es de Uruguay.
She is from Uruguay.

La gente de esta región es muy alta.

The people of this region are very tall.

 talk about the beginning of a process (translation: from)

EXAMPLES

De ahora en adelante solo voy a tomar café en la mañana.

From now on I'm only going to drink coffee in the morning.

 compare or talk about a member of a group (translations: in, of or than)

EXAMPLES

Sonia es la más inteligente de la familia.

Sonia is the most intelligent person in the family.

Juan es el más grande de todos los estudiantes del quinto grado.

Juan is the biggest of all the 5th-grade students.

Hay más de 10 personas en la clase de historia.

There are more than 10 people in the history class.

 describe a noun using another noun (translation: of, although it often has no direct translation)
EXAMPLES

¿Puedes comprar
papel de baño?

Can you buy toilet paper?

Me encanta el jugo de naranja.

I love orange juice.

Preposition Profile: en

This common preposition can mean in, on, at, about, or by, among other translations. It can be
used to:

 indicate location (translations: in, on, at)

EXAMPLES

Está en mi mochila.

It is in my backpack.

Pon el cuadro en la pared.

Put the painting on the

wall.

Ellos están en la iglesia.

They are at church.

 to indicate time (translation: in)

EXAMPLES

Fui a Perú en el verano.

I went to Peru in the summer.

Vienen en una hora.

They are arriving in one hour.

 to indicate manner, or how something is done (translation: by)

EXAMPLES
Vamos a Italia en tren.

We go to Italy by train.

Me voy al doctor en coche.

I go to the doctor by car.

There are also many common phrases that begin with en:

EXAMPLES

en broma

as a joke

en serio

seriously

en vivo

live

PART III - CONJUNCTION

Learning Objectives :

At the end of the lesson, the students are able to:

1.) Learn how to use the conjunction in spanish sentences

2.) Translate effectively the spanish sentences using conjunction

Common Spanish Conjunctions

SPANISH ENGLISH

y and
e
and

o
or

u
or

pero
but

mas
but

sino
but, rather

entonces
then

ni…ni neither…
nor

o…o
either…or

sea…sea
either…or

EXAMPLES

¿Quieres una manzana o una naranja?

Do you want an apple or an orange?

Hablo inglés y español.

I speak English and Spanish.

Quiere aprender italiano, pero no tiene tiempo.

He wants to learn Italian, but doesn’t have the time.

Tricky Conjunctions
Pero, Sino, and Mas
These three conjunctions can all be translated as but, but they're not interchangeable.

Pero and Mas

Pero and mas mean but and are used to contrast two statements. However, mas is considered to
be more literary, and is something you're much more likely to see in formal writing.

EXAMPLES

Quieren viajar a Costa Rica, pero no tienen suficiente dinero.

They want to travel to Costa Rica, but they don’t have enough money.

Soy joven, mas no soy ingenuo.

I'm young, but I'm not naïve.

Sino
Sino also means but, but is used to introduce an affirmation that contrasts a previous negative
statement.

EXAMPLES

Mi hermano no es alto, sino bajo.

My brother isn’t tall, but short.

No vine a escuchar, sino a cantar.

I didn’t come to listen, but to sing.

Y and E
When y comes before a word that begins with a i- or hi-, it changes to an e.
Y does not change to e before words that begin with hie-.

EXAMPLES

Hablo español e inglés.

I speak Spanish and English.

Necesito productos de
limpieza e higiene.

I need cleaning and hygiene products.

Hay que ponerle azúcar y hielo al té.

We need to add sugar and ice to the tea.

O and U
When o comes before a word that begins with a o- or ho-, it changes to a u.

EXAMPLES

¿Quieres ir a Nueva York u Orlando?

Do you want to go to New York or Orlando?

Debes decir "buenos días" u "hola".

You should say "good morning" or "hello."

Regular and Irregular verbs - (Yo form) in present tense

Learning Objectives :

At the end of the lesson, the students are able to :

1.) Master the regular and irregular verbs in spanish including the conjugation.

2.) Use the conjugated verbs in spanish sentencess

3.) Construct basic sentences and able to translate from english to spanish correctly.
PART I - Los verbos regulares

CONTENT :

Regular verbs in the present tense

There are 3 regular verb endings in Spanish: verbs ending in -ar: amar (to love), cantar (to sing); verbs ending in -
er: temer (to fear), beber (to drink); and finally verbs ending in -ir: partir (to leave), recibir (to receive).

They are conjugated as follows:

Hablar

Yo hablo
Tú hablas
Él/ella/usted habla
Nosotros/as hablamos
Vosotros/as habláis
Ellos/ellas/ustedes hablan

Comer

Yo como
Tú comes
Él/ella/usted come
Nosotros/as comemos
Vosotros/as coméis
Ellos/ellas/ustedes comen

Vivir

Yo vivo
Tú vives
Él/ella/usted vive
Nosotros/as vivimos
Vosotros/as vivís
Ellos/ellas/ustedes viven

Ana trabaja en Buenos Aires.

Ana works in Buenos Aires.

Cuando estudiamos las conjugaciones, nos aburrimos.

When we study conjugations, we get bored.

In Spanish, there are three categories of verbs. The category is determined by the last two letters of the infinitive:

-ar verbs (like hablar)

-er verbs (like comer)
-ir verbs (like vivir)

The infinitive is the base form of the verb, such as to speak, to eat, to live, etc. In Spanish, all infinitives end in -ar, -er, or -
ir.

-ar verb
hablar (to speak)

-er verb
comer (to eat)

-ir verb
vivir (to live)

To conjugate a verb means to manipulate the infinitive so that it agrees with the different possible subjects. Here is the
present tense conjugation of the infinitive “to speak”:

to speak

I speak
you speak
he speaks
she speaks
we speak
you-all speak
they speak

The present tense in Spanish can mean three things. The Spanish phrase “yo hablo” can mean:

yo hablo
I speak

yo hablo
I am speaking

yo hablo
I do speak

Many Spanish verbs are completely regular, meaning that they follow a specific pattern of conjugation. In this lesson you
will learn to conjugate regular -ar, -er, and -ir verbs (in the present tense). Before you can do that, you must memorize the
following subject pronouns.

yo (I)
tú (you – informal)
él (he)
ella (she)
usted (you – formal)
nosotros/nosotras (we)
vosotros/vosotras (you-all – informal)

ellos/ellas (they)
ustedes (you-all formal)

PART II - LOS VERBOS IRREGULARES

CONTENT :

In Spanish, irregular verbs, are verbs that usually do not follow the regular conjugation rules of
the infinitive ending on the verb (-ar, -er, and -ir). These verbs are irregular only in the first
person singular, or yo (I) form; all the other forms in the present are regular.

Irregular Verbs Table

Verb Yo (Form) Translation

caber quepo to fit
caer caigo to fall
creer creo to believe
cubrir cubro to cover
dar doy to give
estar estoy to be / to stay
hacer hago to do
saber sé to know
salir salgo to leave
traer traigo to bring
ver veo to see
Example:
Yo hago los platos todos los días.
I do the dishes everyday.

Verbs that end with a vowel followed by -cer and -cir, the c is changed to zco in the first person
singular only (Yo).

Examples:
(Verb Agradecer) – Agradezco que estén en mi fiesta.
I am grateful that you are in my party.

(Verb Conocer) – Conozco a Juana y es una buena persona.

I know Juana and she is a good person.

Irregular Verbs ending in -Cer and Cir

Verbo Yo (Form) Translation

agradecer agradezco to thank, to be grateful
aparecer aparezco to appear
crecer crezco to grow
conocer conozco to know
Verbo Yo (Form) Translation
complacer complazco to please
conducir conduzco to drive
establecer establezco to establish
merecer merezco to deserve
ofrecer ofrezco to offer
padecer padezco to suffer (illnes-allergies)
pertenecer pertenezco to belong
producir produzco to produce
reconocer reconozco to recognize
traducir traduzco to translate
Irregular Verbs (Compounds verbs with prefixes des-, dis-, com-, con-, etc)

For these verbs, just add the consonant g between the radical and the verb ending.

Example:
(Verbo – Componer) Yo compongo canciones de navidad.
(Verb- Compose) I compose Christmas songs.

Irregular Verbs with prefixes des-, dis-, com-, con-

Verbo Yo (form) Translation

componer compongo to compose
deshacer deshago to undo
disponer dispongo to provide/to arrange
distraer distraigo to distract
proponer propongo to propose
rehacer rehago to remake/ to redo
suponer supongo to suppose/ to assume/ to guess
Irregular Verbs ending in -ger or -gir — change the g to jo (for the first person only)

Verbo Yo (form) Translation

coger cojo to catch/ to grab
encoger encojo to shrink
escoger escojo to choose
exigir exijo to demand
dirigir dirijo to direct
fingir finjo to pretend
proteger protejo to protect
recoger recojo to pick up
Review

 Irregular verbs are irregular only in the first person singular, or yo (I) form; all the other forms in the present are
regular.
 Verbs that end with a vowel followed by -cerand -cir, the c is changed to zco in the first person singular only
(Yo).
Irregular Verb in spanish Present form
Learning Objectives :

At the end of the lessons,the students are able to:

1. master the verb conjugation

2. use the the conjugated verb in the sentence translated from english to spanish

3. construct a simple dialogue conversation using the lessons in the midterm period

4. assess knowledge and skills from previous lessons

PART I - LESSON CONTENT

In Spanish, irregular verbs, are verbs that usually do not follow the regular conjugation rules of the infinitive ending on the
verb (-ar, -er, and -ir). These verbs are irregular only in the first person singular, or yo (I) form; all the other forms in the
present are regular.

Irregular Verbs Table

Verb Yo (Form) Translation

caber quepo to fit
caer caigo to fall
creer creo to believe
cubrir cubro to cover
dar doy to give
estar estoy to be / to stay
hacer hago to do
saber sé to know
salir salgo to leave
traer traigo to bring
ver veo to see
Example:
Yo hago los platos todos los días.
I do the dishes everyday.

Verbs that end with a vowel followed by -cer and -cir, the c is changed to zco in the first person singular only (Yo).

Examples:
(Verb Agradecer) – Agradezco que estén en mi fiesta.
I am grateful that you are in my party.

(Verb Conocer) – Conozco a Juana y es una buena persona.

I know Juana and she is a good person.

Irregular Verbs ending in -Cer and Cir

Verbo Yo (Form) Translation
agradecer agradezco to thank, to be grateful
aparecer aparezco to appear
crecer crezco to grow
conocer conozco to know
complacer complazco to please
conducir conduzco to drive
establecer establezco to establish
merecer merezco to deserve
ofrecer ofrezco to offer
padecer padezco to suffer (illnes-allergies)
pertenecer pertenezco to belong
producir produzco to produce
reconocer reconozco to recognize
traducir traduzco to translate
Irregular Verbs (Compounds verbs with prefixes des-, dis-, com-, con-, etc)

For these verbs, just add the consonant g between the radical and the verb ending.

Example:
(Verbo – Componer) Yo compongo canciones de navidad.
(Verb- Compose) I compose Christmas songs.

Irregular Verbs with prefixes des-, dis-, com-, con-

Verbo Yo (form) Translation

componer compongo to compose
deshacer deshago to undo
disponer dispongo to provide/to arrange
distraer distraigo to distract
proponer propongo to propose
rehacer rehago to remake/ to redo
suponer supongo to suppose/ to assume/ to guess
Irregular Verbs ending in -ger or -gir — change the g to jo (for the first person only)

Verbo Yo (form) Translation

coger cojo to catch/ to grab
encoger encojo to shrink
escoger escojo to choose
exigir exijo to demand
dirigir dirijo to direct
fingir finjo to pretend
proteger protejo to protect
recoger recojo to pick up
Review
  Irregular verbs are irregular only in the first person singular, or yo (I) form; all the other forms in the present are
regular.
 Verbs that end with a vowel followed by -cerand -cir, the c is changed to zco in the first person singular only
(Yo).
PART II - Dialogue Making :

See the activity column for complete details and instructions provided with the rubrics for assessment.